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As Maya battles in the ICU, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) have begun the grim task of reconstructing the shooter’s path. Authorities have identified eighteen-year-old Jesse van Rootselaar as the gunman. The investigation suggests a planned, multi-stage attack that began at his family home, where he allegedly murdered his mother and stepbrother before driving to the secondary school. The rampage ended when van Rootselaar was found dead at the scene from a self-inflicted wound. Investigators are currently scouring his digital footprint and personal history to understand the “why” behind such a catastrophic failure of peace, though for the families in the hospital waiting rooms, the motive matters far less than the recovery of their children.
The tragedy has prompted an outpouring of communal support. A GoFundMe campaign, established to assist the Edmonds family with the massive costs of medical care, travel, and long-term rehabilitation, has already surpassed $255,000. For Maya, the road ahead will be measured in years, not weeks. Traumatic brain injuries of this magnitude require extensive specialized care, and the funds are seen as a vital lifeline for a family whose world was upended in a matter of seconds.
However, in Vancouver, the politics and the statistics fade into the background. There, the world is reduced to the size of a sterile hospital room, the rhythmic hum of a ventilator, and the steady beep of a heart monitor. The focus remains entirely on a twelve-year-old girl who, just days ago, was worried about homework and friendships, and who is now the face of a town’s collective hope.
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